CAN the Gilas Pilipinas Under-16 squad prove untouchable?
The young Filipino dribblers clashed with Indonesia last night in their bid to complete a sweep of the SEABA Under-16 Championship at the GOR Kertajaya Surabaya Arena in Indonesia.
Gilas went into the match armed with an 85-49 ripping of Thailand last Tuesday that hiked its mark to 2-0 and boosted its bid for a top two finish in the regional tilt.
Only the top two teams after the tournament will qualify for the FIBA Under-16 Asia Championships in Doha, Qatar on September 17-24.
Kieffer Alas shone anew for the charges of coach Josh Reyes.
After sizzling with 27 points against Malaysia three days ago, the son of former PBA tactician Louie notched 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field, to go with eight rebounds, five assists, and three steals.
Guard Kurt Velasquez and Joaquin Ludovice also chipped in 12 and 10 markers, respectively, for the Philippine five.
Elijah Williams also had nine points, five rebounds, and two steals, while CJ Amos, Ziv Espinas, and Irus Chua contributed eight markers each.
With Alas showing the way, Gilas Youth zoomed to an 18-7 start before taking a 39-24 spread at the break.
The Philippines never looked back from there and led by as much as 36 points.
Michael Barwisch carried the fight for the Thais with 17 markers.
